18-18-411. Keeping, maintaining, controlling, renting, or making available property for unlawful distribution or manufacture of controlled substances

(1) It is unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally to keep, maintain, control, rent, lease, or make available for use any store, shop, warehouse, dwelling, building, vehicle, vessel, aircraft, room, enclosure, or other structure or place, which that person knows is resorted to for the purpose of keeping for distribution, transporting for distribution, or distributing controlled substances in violation of this article.

(2) Except as authorized by this article, it is unlawful for any person to:

(a) Knowingly or intentionally open or maintain any place which that person knows is resorted to for the purpose of unlawfully manufacturing a controlled substance; or

(b) Manage or control any building, room, or enclosure, either as an owner, lessee, agent, employee, or mortgagee, and knowingly or intentionally rent, lease, or make available for use, with or without compensation, the building, room, or enclosure which that person knows is resorted to for the purpose of unlawfully manufacturing a controlled substance.

(3) A person does not violate subsection (2) of this section:

(a) By reason of any act committed by another person while that other person is unlawfully on or in the structure or place, if the person lacked knowledge of the unlawful presence of that other person; or

(b) If the person has notified a law enforcement agency with jurisdiction to make an arrest for the illegal conduct.

(4) A person who violates this section commits a class 1 misdemeanor.

Case Law

When you look at the Statute, you may have questions about definitions of certain words or how the Colorado Court will interpret certain phrases. To answer these questions, Defense Attorney turn to "case law." That is, lawyers look at previous cases to determine how these words and phrases should be defined and interpreted. The best way to locate caselaw for free is to go to google scholar and search for legal opinions involving your charges from Colorado courts. Remember to talk to your attorney about any issues in your case and how the lawyer believes that the issues should be handled.

Colorado Penalties for Use Of Real Property For Unlawful Controlled Substance Distribution Or Manufacture

Penalties

The charge of Use Of Real Property For Unlawful Controlled Substance Distribution Or Manufacture, is categorized as a:

M1

How to Use This Information

After you have hired a Colorado Defense Attorney, you will need to sit down with him to talk about the strengths and weaknesses of your case. To begin this process, you should think about what the prosecutor will attempt to show in order to say that you are guilty. This involves analyzing the statute language above as well as the jury instructions (which is the set of instructions that the jury will use to understand the law). This will allow you to get a better idea of how you can attack the prosecutor’s case and build your own case. So to begin, you should understand that the prosecutor will need to prove certain things beyond a reasonable doubt for you to be found guilty. These things are called “elements”.

The jury will be notified of the elements through a set of instructions called “Jury Instructions.” The Jury Instructions will be crafted by your attorney and the prosecutor. Your Colorado Defense Attorney will mold the jury instructions to your case, adding facts that are specific to the case and omitting unnecessary parts of the instructions.

Please find the model jury instruction for Use Of Real Property For Unlawful Controlled Substance Distribution Or Manufacture below. These will be adapted by your Colorado Attorney for your case.

The elements of the crime of use of real property for unlawful controlled substance distribution or manufacture are: 1. That the defendant, 2. in the State of Colorado, at or about the date and place charged, 3. knowingly or intentionally, 4. [kept, maintained, controlled, rented, leased, or made available for use any store, shop, warehouse, dwelling, building, vehicle, vessel, aircraft, room, enclosure, or other structure or place, which that defendant knew was resorted to for the purpose of keeping for distribution, transporting for distribution, or distributing controlled substances] – or ? [opened or maintained any place which that defendant knew was resorted to for the purpose of unlawfully manufacturing a controlled substance] – or ? [managed or controlled any building, room, or enclosure, either as an owner, lessee, agent, employee, or mortgagee, and knowingly or intentionally rented, leased, or made available for use, with or without compensation, the building, room, or enclosure which defendant knew was resorted to for the purpose of unlawfully manufacturing a controlled substance.] 5. [without the affirmative defense in instruction number ____.] After considering all the evidence, if you decide the prosecution has proven each of the elements beyond a reasonable doubt, you should find the defendant guilty of the crime of use of real property for unlawful controlled substance distribution or manufacture. After considering all the evidence, if you decide the prosecution failed to prove any one or more of the elements beyond a reasonable doubt, you should find the defendant not guilty of the crime of use of real property for unlawful controlled substance distribution or manufacture. NOTES ON USE Delete inapplicable bracketed material. The applicable definitions of ?intentionally?, ?knowingly?, ?distribution?, ?manufacture? and ?controlled substance? must be given with this instruction. A person does not violate this section: (a) by reason of any act committed by another person while that other person is unlawfully on or in the structure or place, if the defendant lacked knowledge of the unlawful presence of that other person; or (b) if the person has notified a law enforcement agency with jurisdiction, to make an arrest for the illegal conduct.

To begin the process of analyzing your case, think about your case from the perspective of the prosecutor. Think about the facts that the prosecutor will have to prove to establish each element. Next, sit down with your CO Defense Attorney and talk about some of the legal ways that you can use to counter the prosecutor’s evidence. Talk to your attorney about whether he thinks any of the prosecutor’s evidence can be kept out of court. For example, if you were illegally searched, your attorney may be able to keep the things that were found, as a result of that illegal search, out of court. Additionally, talk to your attorney about whether you have any defenses to Use Of Real Property For Unlawful Controlled Substance Distribution Or Manufacture.

Important Notes:

Don’t Forget about Immigration:

If you are not a U.S. citizen, be sure to ask your attorney whether your charges will trigger deportation if you are found guilty or plea to the charge.

Good Luck!

The information in this post is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice or as the creation of an attorney-client relationship. For legal advice, please contact an Attorney.

Nathaniel has worked in criminal law on both sides of the aisle spending time working for the prosecution as well as the defense. Most recently Nathaniel has represented individuals in violent felonies and drug cases. Prior to this work, Nathaniel handled DWIs, Domestic Violence Cases, Property Crimes, and White Collar Crimes. On the prosecutorial side, Nathaniel has most notably worked in Bosnia helping to prosecute individuals who committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Bosnian War from 1993-1995. In particular, Nathaniel helped in the prosecution of military leaders who arranged for the organized murders and rapes of innocent civilians in various towns in Bosnia. Nathaniel is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, Northwestern University, and Phillips Exeter Academy.
Google Profile: Nathaniel Baca

Please email any feedback, comments, or questions or call at 303-586-1731.

Name

Phone

Email

Questions/Comments

Leave This Field Empty

Colorado Criminal Attorney for Denver DUI, Colorado DUI, Assault, Domestic Violence, and Felony Charges
provides this website for general information only. The information presented at this site should not be construed to be formal legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship.